Storm
by ENDGAM3
Summary: It's a rinse and repeat process. They've been here before, but it can't happen the same way again...not like this...Not when there's feelings involved. LeonxCloud.


_Rabble-babble-drabble-drabble...Just something I started writing...dropped...picked up...rewrote...then got encouraged to post._

_LeonXCloud...I don't own Kingdom Hearts and its respective creative rights, including characters. This is my interpretation of the characters...Enjoy._

Leon stared dimly at the wall. Each paint chip and small crack seemed so mesmerising to him for some reason. Perhaps his mind didn't want to dwell on recent events. Maybe he didn't want to look at the broken glass on the floor or feel the sting of the cuts on his body. The Gunblader sat silently; weapon heavy in his hands and the aftermath of a falling out scattered around him. Was it wrong to feel concern? Was it wrong to want to protect those around you, those closest to you? He had never forced his way into another's business. It was never his place. But with Cloud, it was different…Leon was tired of watching him destroy himself by fighting an already lost battle.

'I'll get him this time…' he'd say, his brilliant Mako blue eyes cold with resolve. He'd say it every time. Every time, he'd come back…defeated, barely alive.

Aerith would fuss over him, concerned and motherly. Tifa got angry. She'd scold him before refusing to talk to him for days. But Leon would just patch him up silently, let the blonde crash on his couch and not ask questions. It was an unspoken understanding between them. The Gunblader always had a meal, a hot shower and a spot to sleep lined up for Cloud. He never asked for anything. Never outwardly. But when their eyes would meet and Cloud could see Leon wanted nothing more than him to stay. He didn't want him to face it alone. Yet the younger knew it wasn't his place to hold him back. So the blonde ignored his silent pleas, pretended not to see it in those turbulent steel blue eyes. He'd shut the door behind him. He'd lock Leon out.

Wet dirt, and mildew…the smell of rain all around him. Cloud stared out from the shelter of the Bailey. The rainwater mingled into his cuts and the downpour drowned out his heavy breathing. What triggered their fight played over his mind again and again.

_'There's a storm coming, Cloud. You should stay home…'_

**_I fear you won't…_**

It was clear in Leon's eyes and that look had set Cloud off.

He frowned. He could usually count on the quiet Gunblader, but there had been a change of late. He had become more vocal about his thoughts and feelings. Little things had suddenly taken on new meaning and there was a shift in their standing. The change had unsettled him; he didn't understand it at first. Maybe because he hadn't seen it coming.

It was so subtle that neither of the two noticed it. Their moments of silence had lost that awkwardness and ebbed into a strange feeling of comfort. Cloud soon came to rely on Leon's care, his way of convincing him to do the mundane and to take better care of himself. The little things the Gunblader did for him kept him at ease. Idle talk about past battles, the way he held his gaze and watched over him so quietly. Leon would wake him gently in the morning and stir him during his bad dreams at night. For that, the blonde was grateful. Yet something nagged at him in the back of his mind. He was too comfortable. He was too at home with the other and he had become so much more aware of the warmth that spread in his chest with every touch they shared. The same heat had blazed through him when Leon had grabbed him and held him back from leaving. It made something in him ache.

Then the subtly was lost. The end result was right before him and it _burned_ in his heart and mind. It frightened him. He was so close and so far away at the same time. Cloud couldn't comprehend it. The emotion was too strong and he just couldn't bear to face it. So he yelled at the younger man. Confused and frightened by his own stirring feelings he cried betrayal. He had turned his sword on the other and tried to fight it out of his system. Between blows, Leon had attempted to reason with him. But the mercenary only heard his voice, not his words.

Cloud pressed the heels of his hands hard into his eyes. It was too much too quickly. The thunder and lightning seemed like nothing compared to the storm of thoughts swirling around in his head. He could still hear the pleading in Leon's tone. His reasoning got tied up in the subtle baritone of his voice. And Cloud knew what it was. He hated himself for it. His own emotions were betraying him. Staring out at the darkened sky, he felt compelled to scream. He wanted him. He loved him. And there was no way he could fight the pull any more…

Leon fisted his shirt in frustration. His heart ached with such intensity and he just couldn't shake the look of betrayal on Cloud's face from his mind. The hushed whisper of Curaga dispelled the pain of his wounds, but left the throbbing in his chest. Not even a night with Cid's hardest drink could cure him of that. A dejected sigh left his lips and he moved for the first time in what felt like hours. Glass crunched under his heavy boots as he lay his Gunblade down in its case. He'd tend to its scratches and nicks in the morning. Tonight had left him too distracted. Tonight…he just wanted to wallow in his own self-pity.

His nightly routine had proved enough to distract him. For that, he was thankful. His brain seemed to switch off and his body went into autopilot. First a shower, then he'd cook up a meal…The Gunblader paused momentarily, feeling the glass underfoot. He wasn't cut, but it was enough to shock him back. A whole minute ticked by and a loud sigh escaped him.

'I forgot to clean up,' he uttered.

'Ah. Was that my fault again?' Steel met Mako blue, and Leon froze as he took in the sight of a drenched Cloud Strife, sitting on his couch.

'You're making it worse,' the Gunblader pointed out, after a moment of recovery. Cloud merely shrugged. It was water after all.

'Yeah. Apparently there's a storm raging outside,' the blonde muttered humourlessly. The younger didn't seem too impressed, however.

'Would you like me to say "I told you so", or would you rather me feel sorry for you, Strife?' There was no denying the hostility in Leon's voice. He was getting just a little over giving him sound advice that constantly got thrown back in his face. Cloud was at the point where he honestly couldn't blame him.

'I get it, okay?'

'Get what, Strife?' The younger shot back. 'That I'm sick and tired of cleaning up your mess? And I'm not just talking about a literal one,' he added as the blonde opened his mouth to retort. 'I'm tired, Cloud. Really, I am. I have this entire place on my shoulders and then you have to go and keep throwing your tantrums about that Hyne damn darkness of your's.'

'That-…'

'I'm not finished,' Leon cut in, his voice tinged with rage. 'You never let me finish. I can't keep doing this, Cloud. Whatever this screwed up arrangement is, I can't do it any more,' he said, dropping into an armchair. 'You can't expect me to just keep letting you run off to get hurt. By Hyne, Cloud!' He leant forward, his head in his hands. 'When I see you tore up like that…it just…I just don't know what to do any more…' They sat in silence then. How could Cloud respond to that? There was nothing he could say. His insides twisted and he frowned deeply. Getting up slowly, he sighed. It was never about the storm, or the broken couch, muddy shoes or lack of care toward his things. All that seemed so insignificant to what he was saying now. The blonde left him in silence; there was nothing more he could do. He would shower, dry up and sleep. They'd go back to their same routine, like it had been in the past. Awkward silences and short, curt words.

_Whelp...there will be more when I get around to it. I hope you enjoyed it._


End file.
